Speaker Johnson administers oath to Matt Van Epps following Tennessee special election

On Thursday morning, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) formally administered the oath to Rep. Matt Van Epps (R-Tenn.), just under two days after Van Epps secured a closely contested special election to occupy a vacant House seat.

Van Epps, a veteran of the U.S. Army, will take over from former Rep. Mark Green (R), who stepped down in July to pursue a role in the private sector. Prior to his election to Congress, Van Epps served as the commissioner of the Tennessee Department of General Services.

In the election, Van Epps narrowly defeated Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn by about nine percentage points, a significantly smaller margin than the 22-point lead that former President Trump achieved in the same district last year.

With Van Epps officially sworn in, Republicans now control the House with a 220-213 majority, though two seats remain vacant. This advantage is expected to decrease when Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) leaves Congress on January 5.

The swift swearing-in of Van Epps drew comparisons to the delayed induction of Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who was not sworn in for 50 days following her special election victory. Critics, including Democratic officials, highlighted the inconsistency in timing.

Speaker Johnson explained that the delay with Grijalva was due to the House not being in session during the 43-day government shutdown.

Author: Noah Whitman